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WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



BY 

MARY HALL LEONARD 
it 



BOSTON 
THE PALMER COMPANY 

120 BOYLSTON ST. 
1911 



Copyright, 19 ii, by 
MARY HALL LEONARD 



Printed by 
Frederick H. Hitchcock 
105 "West 40th Street 
New York 



©GI.A297706 
Vic.f 



NOTE 

This poem, written many years ago, contains some 
true descriptions of natural scenery, but it is not his- 
tory and has no pen portraits of real people. After a 
long period of lying idle in my desk it is herewith placed 
in print as a tribute to the memory of my early home 
and of past and present friends. 

The Author. 



Go, little hook, full long thou hast refused 
To venture forth on wavering, untried wing; 
But take thy hazard, calmly unafraid, 
Nor longer yield to dilatory mood. 

Why should a hirdling fully fledged remain 
Inert and wind-tossed in a last year's nest? 
Better to fly and fall, confessing thus 
Thy strength and weakness freely to the world. 

So I, the author of thy being, tilt 
The hough whereon thou slumherest, send thee forth 
To fate's adventure, hid thee sing thy song, 
Whether or no it find a listening ear. 

I praise thee not nor censure. If thou fail 
To meet to-day's ideals, these no less 
May he outworn as ever-changing time 
Shall lift aloft new standards to the world. 

At least with stern respect I herehy greet 
Within this verse the spirit of my youth; 
The soul I am to-day with reverence hows 
Unto the soul sincere I sometime was. 

Then go, my hooklet. Go and utter forth 

The thoughts that hreathe in thee. If some shall care 

To listen it is well. If not, he meek; 

Accept the issue. Go and tell thy tale. 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

^^ ■ ^WAS August, and the ripening year had spread 
I Its wealth of glories o'er the satiate earth; 

M Soft hues of early Summer were dissolved 

In glowing depths of color; here and there 
Already Autumn's scarlet brush had touched 
Woodbine and sumac, and the goldenrod 
Waved yellowing plumes beside each wayside fence. 
The jewel-weed had hung its pendants out 
As if inviting pretty maids to pluck 
Eardrops of gold to heighten beauty's grace. 
Gay cardinal flowers upheaved their flaming heads 
By meadow brooklets, and on forest edge 
Fair bashful asters lifted golden eyes 
'Neath fringed lashes veiled. The gentle breath 
Of violet, wilding rose, and new-mown hay 
Long fled, the summer air was surfeit grown 
With fruity smells, while thro' the woodland walks 
The clethra's heavy fragrance lingered still. 
Like some fair stately dame who lays aside 
The simple muslin and the brooch of pearl 

II 



12 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

That fitted girlhood's freshness, and bedecks 
Herself in costly fabrics and displays 
Her jewelled treasures, while around exhale 
Ambrosial Eastern perfumes, so with charms 
That soon must wither from the touch of frost , 
In sumptuous splendor stood the matron year. 

It was the season when from city's heat 

And choking dust and stifling poisoned air 

Earth's weary workers seek the hills and farms. 

Here where the strengthening breeze finds room to blow 

'Mong fragrant murmuring pines and singing birds 

They find the sweet refreshment Nature craves. 

So life renews itself, the rested brain 

No more refuses thought, and they return 

Revigorate for another year of toil. 

Then, school restraints removed, the boys and girls 

Explore the woods and picnic in the groves 

Or fish for minnows in the brooks and ponds 

Through long delightful summer holidays. 

Then even the farmers and their busy wives 

To whom vacation never comes, may find 

'Twixt hay and harvest tiny breathing-space 

For a brief excursion to the shore, or drive 

To a cousin's farmhouse in the neighboring town. 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Twas in this month of summer rest that we, 

Far-flinging every care, a merry six, 

Betook us to a small New England lake 

And on a wooded island fixed our camp. 

Richly by Nature was our covert dowered ; 

A grove of patriarch pines with leafy roof 

And slippery carpet formed the island's crown; 

Below, a grassy slope, while lower yet 

Tall bushes, tiny trees and hazel copse 

For our retreat a graceful border made. 

Eastward a grassy capelet shoreward reached, — 

Well-nigh an isthmus during summer drought 

By teams from mainland traversed. Far removed 

From city's rush, no noisy throngs profaned 

The privacy ; but idlers like ourselves 

And rural picnics in these shades might seek 

Their simple pleasures. 

'Neath an ancient beech 
With branches wide outspread we pitched our tent, 
And under thickest boughs our hammocks hung. 
'Mong sheltering pines a tiny cot we spied, 
By sportsmen rudely built who yearly there 
Found Autumn hermitage, when many a duck 
Decoyed from secret nook, and wild-goose bound 
From northern breeding-haunts to southern glades. 
Beneath their aim met luckless destiny. 



13 



14 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



In broad expanse before us, and behind 
Through rifts of sombre green, the dimpHng lake 
Laughed in the sun. Northward it grew more shoal; 
Beyond, broad meadows forest background met, 
Where o'er the tree-tops could the eye discern 
The outlines dim of distant hazy hills. 

Southward with bolder curve and deeper bed 
The lakelet stretched, — two isles upon its breast; 
The one a wooded circlet dense with shade ; 
An emerald fair the other's grassy face, 
Unclaimed by owner and untouched by scythe, 
And tempting us in visionary thought 
To title virgin soil through prior tilth. 

Westward a curious line of sunken rocks 

Their straggling summits showed. The boldest bore 

The seeming imprint of a mighty foot, 

And 'mong the country-folk tradition told 

Strange legends of the Giant's Dam and Rock. 

In olden time when giants walked the earth. 
And gnomes and sprites their woodland revels held, 
A mighty spirit made these shores his haunt, — 
Of trickish temper, yet in genial mood 
Useful to man. Once with the Indians he 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



15 



A bargain made, a dam of boulders large 

To build athwart the channel where the braves 

Might spear their fish. The crafty Red Men pledged 

An Indian youth, the choicest of their tribe, 

As well-earned meed. But when, his labor done, 

The Giant came for stipend, false they sent 

An aged weakling, ready for the grave. 

In wrath the Giant rose, asunder tore 

The rocks, with mighty pressure sinking some 

In the earth's deep crust ; then with a plunge which shook 

The isles and made the waters boil and hiss 

He sank forever; yet this footmark left. 

Enduring witness to a lordlier race 

Of the Giant's fury and the Red Man's guile. 

With sheltered cove and wooded hill and cape 
The lake lay folded in the arms of earth ; 
While strips of pebbly beach with shining sand 
And pearly mussel-shells rare playground made 
For children from the farms. 

So to this spot 
Most dear to Nature's heart, we came to spend 
An idle, merry week. We had been friends 
In earliest childhood ; by these shores had played. 
Flinging smooth pebbles o'er the skipping wave. 
And building houses under stately pines ; 



1 6 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

In the moist beach we dug our wells and scrawled 
Our names with those of favorite friends enlinked, 
Or gathered handfuls of Sabbatia blooms — 
Pondroses was the childish name they bore — 
Which in midsummer rosy setting made ' 

To frame the crystal mirror of the lake. 
Now older grown, from variant paths we sought 
In childhood's well-remembered haunts to find 
Rest for awhile from toil, and link again 
Associations of the sunny past. 

Two of us now were teachers. We had come 
Holding vacation as a well-earned right, 
With pedant books and fret of discipline 
Securely locked behind the schoolroom door. 

And one, a quiet, simple girl, whose days 

With household cares were filled; yet while she wrought 

Prosaic tasks, her spirit soared afar 

On fancy's wings through realms of blissful dreams; 

A poet's nature hers, which held the art 

To weave a golden thread through homespun life. 

With her a farmer brother ; — never knight 
More loyal fealty to lady showed 
Than to his sister he; e'en while he smiled 
In tolerant mood at visions fanciful, — 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 1 7 

Yet ever mindful of her slightest wish 
Before her thought could frame it, 'twas supplied. 
Master of boatcraft he, and knew the pools 
Where fish might congregate ; nor yet unversed 
In books, for though his feet had scarcely strayed 
A hundred miles from home, through summer noons 
And winter eves, he traversed Arctic seas 
With Dr. Kane, and followed Livingston 
Through Afric's trackless wastes, or lived again 
The ages of the Past in stirring words 
Of Gibbon and Macaulay. 

With these two 
A cousin came, a student freshly crowned 
With college laurels, and of mind alert 
For universal knowledge ; spouting phrase 
Of Latin, tasking science, and withal 
Ready in wit, — whose fund of mirthful jokes 
Drew forth resistless floods of merriment. 

And yet one more our little circle held : — 

A grave young lawyer, who from distant home 

Had come to brush the dust of city street 

And musty lawbook from his foot and brain 

Among the farms his boyhood knew; and gained 

From us, the playmates of his early years, 

A glad consent to join our revelry. 



1 8 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

New England youths and maidens we, nor recked 
Aught of the world's conventions. Little need 
Of chaperone advisers felt we then, — 
The youthful Puritans of bygone days. 

Time's hourglass never seemed its sands to turn 

So fast as while we led this jovial life. 

Upon a rounded knoll we built a bower 

Of birchen frame with woven hemlock boughs, 

And tufted moss for native carpet ; here 

We fashioned rustic seats and bravely decked 

The walls with trailing cranberry vines hung thick 

With reddening berries, wreaths of clematis, 

And dark ground-pine garnered from woodland walks. 

Here in the slow-paced summer afternoons 

We read our favorite books, or lightly sketched 

Gay scenes of camp, and water-glimpses rare 

Dotted by gleaming sails of pleasure-boats. 

With forest rim, its slender stems of birch 

In white relief 'gainst sombrous oaks and pines; 

Or sat with folded hands in listless mood 

And idly watched the clouds and talked and dreamed. 

One day when we in silence long had sat, 
Building aerial castles soon to fall, 
Unmindful each of other presence near. 
Sudden I turned me where our poet maid 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE jg 

Half-leaning on the mossy cushioning turf, 

Gazed into airy depths with eyes like stars. 

" What is it, Lela ? Speak ! " I gayly said, 

" What wondrous vision, sealed from earthborn eyes 

Hath filled your face with rapture? Or what words 

Have angel voices whispered in your ear ? 

Or has the muse an inspiration given? 

Unfold your tale ! " 

Dreaming awhile she sat, 
Nor moved nor spoke. At last a playful smile 
Shone o'er her lips, which burst in joyful song. 

Summer weaves with magic spell 

Filmy fetters round me ; 
Soon her charms I know full well 

Prisoner will have bound me. 

Sweet allurements all the while 

Slyly she is bringing. 
Witching kiss and wildering smile 

In profusion flinging. 

Yet a willing victim I 

To the winsome schemer ; 
Folded in her arms I lie 

An enraptured dreamer. 



20 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Fleecy clouds and shining wings 

Float in azure o'er me, 
Formless and ethereal things 

Flit like ghosts before me. 

Heavenly nectar, angels' cheer, 
Unseen hands are bringing. 

Siren voices sweet and clear 
In my ears are ringing. 

Care is banished, passion dulled, 
Every sense seems reeling. 

O'er my frame by sorcery lulled 
Drowsiness is stealing. 

Fast enchained and captive led, 
Tranced is every comer 

If he stoop to lay his head 
In the lap of Summer. 

Thus bathed in sunshine soft, life's roughnesses 
Awhile forgot, like an enchanting dream 
Our days flew by. How many weary whiles 
Since then, have I on memory's wings returned 
To these blest days and found refreshing peace ! 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 21 

Meanwhile our brothers pHed the hook and hne, 

Returning laden with long strings of fish, 

Rich-flavored pickerel and the shining perch 

With now and then a pout or slippery eel. 

Apples and pears in plenty, new-laid eggs, 

And creamy milk the neighboring farms supplied. 

In gypsy fashion over brushwood fires 

We cooked our food, and under moss-hung trees 

Our table spread ; no costly viands served 

At princely banquet half so good e'er seemed 

As to our sharpened appetites this food. 

What matter though the nights were sometimes chill 

Or sudden showers arose ! Were not our sires 

Of Pilgrim stock ? Here where they bravely faced 

Famine and cold and hostile Indian tribes. 

Should we their children, flushed with youth and health. 

Trifling discomforts meet with faltering hearts? 

Oft while our brothers rowed with heavier oar 
We launched our lighter skiff and challenged them 
To merry race. Sometimes in curious mood 
We pushed our dory down the winding stream 
By which these waters seek their ocean source ; 



22 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Or up the reedy inlet called " The Arm," 
Within whose solitudes the plover dwell, 
Where on the rocks the turtles sunning lie, 
And bull-frogs hoarse croak nightly serenades.^ 

When tumbling breezes brushed the glassy lake 
We sought the larger boat, our sail unfurled, 
And with the keen exhilaration born 
Of motion free, flew swift before the wind. 
Sometimes at evening's calm we laid aside 
The laboring oar, and with the current slow 
Drifted along, and pulled with idle hands 
The lily-pads and graceful floating-heart. 
We quoted favorite lines and riddles told. 
While many a tale and merry joke went round; 
Or gayly sang till oft from distant boat 
Came wafted to our ears an answering strain. 

We traced the circle where in measure slow 
Roll the Seven Stars that guard the Northern Pole ; 
Bright Lyra from the zenith o'er us beamed, 
Venus and Mars in rare conjunction shone. 
And just above the horizon at the south, 
With steady hand the Archer drew his bow. 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 23 

Meantime another Archer bold who loves 

The rustic scenes where men and maidens meet 

Was slyly hovering near. With certain aim 

His arrows sped, piercing the hearts of two. 

So the old story was again lived o'er ; 

When a few later moons had waxed and waned 

My girlhood's friend whose fund of sparkling life 

Our grave and studious lawyer's heart had won, 

Was asked to lay her schoolroom tasks aside 

And find her future life in a far-off home. 

Smiling, she answered " Yes," and went away ; 

Dear heart ! How long ago that wedding seems. 

So fast events have crowded ! Her sweet hope 

Hath cheered his soul in many a trying hour 

Of strange vicissitude. — If they had known, — 

If on those summer eves their Fate had stood 

Truly revealed before their questioning eyes 

And with prophetic finger pointed down 

The thorny dangerous path their feet should tread, — 

Would not their hearts have quailed such lot to meet? 

Would they have dared it ? — Ah, perhaps ! — who knows ? 

One afternoon we stood beside the shore 
And watched the gathering signs of sudden squall ; 
For cloud- fraught gusts from north and west had suaged 
The day's oppressive heat, while lurid lines 



24 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Darted across of zigzag blinding fire, 

And rattling thunders rolled. Birds startled past ; 

We heard the tinkling bells of frightened cows, 

And creaking wains of farmers hurrying home ; 

Now a dead pine-branch broken by the blast 

Fell crackling at our feet ; and lo ! — the lake 

Transformed to a sea of ink, while angry waves 

Reared milk-like crests, and foaming breakers lashed 

The rocky shore. We saw the rain-cloud burst; 

Then rushed to gain the shelter of the cot 

Just as in torrents the tempestuous flood 

Dashed wildly 'gainst our roof and window-panes ; — 

There hushed with trembling awe we stood and watched 

The mighty warfare of the elements. 

The storm had rolled away, with parting glow 
Of rainbow-tinted clouds; the trees looked forth 
In foliage fresh, and beaded sunshine tipped 
Each leafy twig. We sought the drying rocks 
And gazed upon the placid lake, which gave 
An answering smile, its momentary frown 
Gone like the tears of childhood. Soon a wee 
Sandpiper, slender-legged, unheeding us 
So motionless, came running o'er the beach 
And paused to drink, lifting his dainty bill 
As if returning thanks for blessings given ; 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE ' 25 

Then balanced on a stone, his tiny form 
A moment swayed exultant, and he spread 
His wings and soared. 

Silent awhile we sat 
Until the sunset hour with golden light 
Flooded the sky and earth and wrapped us round 
With glorious mantle of effulgent flame ; 
Far up through heaven's high vault, and reaching down 
Through mirrored watery depths, a city fair 
Of equal breadth and height in semblance showed, 
Whose wall- foundations shone with precious gems, 
Ruby and sapphire and the topaz clear; 
Its glowing spires and pinnacles were made 
Of shining cloud, and in the midst we saw 
A street of gold, as 'twere transparent glass. 

Since then, o'er land and sea I've wandered far, 

And many a radiant sunset have I seen ; 

Yet not amid Franconia's sun-kissed vales, 

Nor where the crystal waters of Lucerne 

Reflect the Alpine glow from Rigi's crest. 

Nor where through mellowing haze the splendor floats 

And softly melts in calm Italian lakes, 

Have day's departing glories to my eyes 

Lifted so high the everlasting gates 

Whereby the King of Glory entereth in. 



26 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Soon in the lingering twilight there appeared 

The silvery crescent of the infant moon 

And hovered o'er the village spire which gleamed 

Faintly above the treetops ; till we felt 

As though from minaret in Orient lands 

We heard the Moslem calling, " Come to prayer," 

And low our heads in reverent worship bowed. 

Slowly the night her curtain round us drew, 

And lighted glimmering watchfires, and our brows 

With gentle breezes fanned ; until as ebbs 

With stealthy flow the tide along the shore 

Our flood of feeling lessened ; earthward bent 

Our thoughts ; the spell was gone, and speech came back. 

" To-morrow, friends," I said, '' we break our camp 

And bid farewell to jovial woodland life. 

In leafy Paradise we here have dwelt. 

Children of Nature for one gladsome week, 

From her hand feeding, on her breast reclined, 

While in our ears her secrets she has poured. 

Now enter we that feverous Unrest 

We call Society, where all life's wheels 

With speed are driven, till the worn mainspring snaps 

Before its time. Is not the social load 

Too heavy grown? Were it not wisdom's part 

To turn from wiles of art to Nature's arms ? " 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 27 

" Great was my boyhood's joy," the farmer said, 

" When in fresh furrow or on pebbly bank 

I now and then an Indian arrow found. 

These shores were once a favorite hunting-ground 

Of the great PhiHp, Wampanoag chief, 

And many a rehc of his hardy braves 

Became my hoarded treasure; the round stone 

Which ground their corn ; the sharpened flint that served 

For knife and axe ; the hammer once o'ergrown 

With curious handle of intwisted boughs, 

And many a thin, translucent stony wedge 

That tipped their feathered darts and fishing spears. 

Such keepsakes and the fireside stories heard 

Beside my grandsire's knee inflamed my soul 

With longing for the life of a chieftain bold, 

Fishing the streams and chasing fox and deer 

Through boundless hunting-grounds. But boyish dreams 

Were these. I little thought that serious lips 

Of womanhood could life like this prefer 

To social state." 

" My meaning you mistake," 
I answered. " In the cradle of our race 
'Neath Asian skies, our Aryan ancestors 
Tranquilly dwelt. Not theirs the savage mind 
That seeks delight through animal desire. 



28 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

But under Heaven's blue vault they watched their flockj 

And nightly with the stars communion held, 

And found a voice ful personality 

In every rock and rill and wandering breeze. 

True life with Nature is not barbarism ; 

No savages are we, though in these woods ; 

Nor were our fathers of that Pilgrim band 

Who in these wilds their cabins built." 

"But stay!" 
The farmer said, " No sentimental search 
For Age Primeval here our fathers led ; 
Far nobler object theirs, and this achieved 
They bent their energies to meliorate 
Social conditions and o'ertake the East; 
Crown of their labor stands our land to-day 
Coequal with the foremost. For ourselves, — 
'Tis novelty allures; such constant fate 
Were banishment; in halcyon days 'tis well. 
But chilling storms would fright us home. Even here, 
Our social tastes we bring ; your woodland garb 
So picturesque, your dainty sketchbooks filled 
With souvenirs of camp, our well-built boats, 
Are these the insignia of uncultured life? 
Nay, friend, it were no gain to sacrifice 
Our modern implements and plow our fields 
With crooked sticks." 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Then I, " The Preacher saith 
' Many inventions hath the world sought out, 
But wisdom bringeth grief, and vanity 
And sore vexation are its certain sum ; 
Be not o'erwise, why shouldst destroy thyself? ' 
The tree of knowledge bears a bitter fruit, 
'Tis *' Double, double, toil and trouble ' still ; 
The fire burns hot, the cauldron bubbles on. 
And misery abounds." 

" What mood is this," 
He asked, " to fight with pessimistic mind 
The tide which through all history gathers force? 
I joy in this advancing age, which brings 
Achievement marvellous and ever calls 
For wider thought." 

" You speak in current phrase," 
I said, " but social science may have flaws 
By theorists unseen. Why goad ourselves 
For what we cannot gain? The boasted march 
Of ages soon a funeral march may prove 
Across untimely graves. And hardest strain 
Is borne by woman's lesser strength. No more 
May she devote herself to homelike tasks ; 
But worries about rights and wrongs, holds views. 
And grows more wretched as she grows more wise. 



29 



30 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



Better, methinks, the dusky Middle Age 

When amorous knights drew sword for ladies fair, 

Better the lot of women of the East 

Slaves in secluded splendor, than the fate 

Of Nineteenth Century women of the West ! " 

" Surely you jest," my fellow-teacher said, 
" What hath the darling of an Eastern Court, 
Her youthful beauty fled, but toil, neglect. 
And then a grave ? The fruit of wisdom's tree 
You so decry, is noble soul-resource; 
Nor time can waste it, nor misfortune steal. 
No woman in her senses would resign 
The heirlooms of the Ages, or exchange 
Her birthright for a babyhood of soul." 

" Doubtless my words were idle," I replied, 

" No ingrate I. Yet woman's heritage 

In Christendom hath added to its boon 

Some doubtful gifts; feeling by intellect 

Is well-nigh choked, and duty stern and cold 

Crushes love's sweetness out. Why waste our lives 

O'er knotty questions? Better lapse of thought 

Than tanglement of sophistry. Some gain 

Derives from foolishness." 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

The farmer then, 
" Hard problems vex each age ; no harder ours 
Than those our fathers pondered. In despite 
Of all your croaking dolors, you would miss 
The fruit of Time's advance, no less than I." 

" Some gains hath Time achieved," I yielding said, 
" I would not choose stagnation ; yet at times 
I dread the issue of the years. I see 
The social order daily more complex. 
And still the tension tightening; till I ask, 
'Where shall relief be found for nervous strain?' 
And weary brain and heart cry out for peace." 

The lawyer answered to my chafing mood, 
" From passion's tumult and opinion's strife 
The wise man turns to walks of common life. 
The one relief for natures tempest-tossed 
Lies in congenial work." 

" Perhaps 'tis here 
My trouble," slow I said. " Congenial work 
'Tis few that find. To-night in sympathy 
We sit; at dawn we strike our tent and drop 
The hands of fellowship. You go your ways 
Of varied duty; and for me begins 



31 



32 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



Another year of school, a weary stretch 

Of days of thankless toil ensued by nights 

Of feverish wakefulness. And to what end? 

A little lore, hard gotten, soon forgot. 

The children win; while in such prisonmeht 

Bright childhood fleets. And for myself what gain? 

I earn my bread and wear my life away 

With fretting cares." 

The teacher then, surprised: 
" How say you thus ? Not such to me life's scope ! 
Peculiar trials vex a teacher's lot, 
But companied with rich rewards." 

" I know," 
I murmured, " all that pedants boast. Perhaps 
If situate like you in school select 
I might complaisance find; but in this thrall 
Of public service hope and courage fail. 
Best efforts 'gainst my pupils' needs offset 
Seem hopeless waste. Meantime myself am changed; 
Sole intercourse with lower minds to growth 
No impulse gives; nor, duties done, can strength 
Remain for study ; thus my thought is bound 
By a narrowing horizon, while I chafe 
In hopeless effort, and my temper sours ; 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



33 



Often I lay my weary head to rest 

After a harrowing day with self-reproach 

For angry words and hasty deeds." 

"Alas! 
A doleful picture ! Pray let me advise ! " 
Gayly the student said. " Suppose you place 
As motto on your schoolroom wall these lines 
Of Coleridge, mentor wise for teachers good: 
* O'er wayward childhood wouldst thou hold firm rule 
And sun thee in the light of happy faces, 
Love, hope and patience, these must be thy graces. 
And in thine own heart let them first keep school.' " 

" My troubles brook no jest," I sharply said, 
" To name a list of virtues will not heal 
The ' weary day when overtasked at length 
Both Love and Hope beneath the load give way.' " 

Then he more gravely, " Why not further quote ? 
' Then with a statue's smile, a statue's strength, 
Stands the mute sister Patience, nothing loth. 
And both supporting, does the work of both.' " 

" 'Twould need," I said, " a patience infinite ; 
But human powers have limitation fixed, 
And when poor Patience of her sisters reft 
Meets failure, who shall take the burden up? 



34 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Or what can Patience of herself achieve? 
A loveless, hopeless Patience can but stand 
Holding her own against the assaults of ill. 
It needs a higher, holier strength than hers, 
A mighty zeal, on wings of faith upborne, 
To lift humanity from earthborn ways 
To realms of truth and light." 

" I think we need," 
The teacher said, " at times to close our eyes 
To faults, and view conditions at their best. 
Should not the gardener sometimes leave the work 
Of pruning limbs and pulling noxious weeds 
To note the fragrance of a flower or search 
For opening buds among the leaves ? " 

" Most good 
In theory ! " I captious cried. " In sooth 
Both you and Lela are enthusiasts born, 
But my dull nature never runs to waste 
In wild imaginings ; the bright conceits 
That please the fancy of the optimist 
Elude my earth-bent eyes ; the little imp 
Of mischief is to me but a naughty child, 
Nor can I place him on a pedestal 
With glittering halos crowned." 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



35 



" But nay, my friend," 
She gently urged, " no idle visions these ! 
Should not the Artist place his picture where 
The light of heaven may softly o'er it fall, 
And thus the innate beauty clear reveal? 
Would the soul of nature, think you, in him find 
Interpreter more true, should he refuse 
To see the changing lights and shades that give 
Expression to her face, and merely paint 
In outlines bare? Upon the sea-shore lies 
A tiny ball, unsightly, brown and dry. 
We look again; the waves have covered it. 
The clogging sand is washed away, and now 
With spreading fibres delicately wrought 
It floats a bit of sea-moss exquisite. 
But is the nobler aspect false? Did not 
Intrinsic beauty all the while await 
The coming wave to make it manifest? 
So the ideal is but simple truth 
Seen through the medium of a loving thought." 

Then I, " Perhaps you're right, but Nature wise 
Endues her sons with temperament diverse. 
And no small share of earthly work she gives 
To plodding, wingless workers like myself. 
Yet true suggestion in your words I find ; 



36 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

I think indeed 'tis chiefly faith I lack, 

Faith in the labor's end. Though yet more wide 

The question ranges. Is this strife, I ask, 

For universal education wise? , 

Our fathers were content to teach the boy 

His duty to his God, his fellow-man 

And native land ; to live a virtuous life 

And die in peace. But every modern child, 

Whate'er his sphere, must clever smattering gain 

Of every craft. Instruction thus becomes 

A task Herculean; childhood's artlessness 

Is banished; shallow knowledge takes the place 

Of depth; and knowing men with little minds 

Employ their crudities for trait'rous ends." 

Once more the lawyer spoke : " I too have felt 
How powerless to insure the public weal 
Is all our Schoolcraft. Manual labor must 
For most mankind, perforce, find daily bread. 
Nor count such lot unhappy! If the sum 
Of human joys be reckoned, who shall dare 
Affirm that fuller measure is vouchsafed 
To learning's votaries than to sons of toil? 
But useless scholarship may render these 
Unfit for lowly work, yet not equipped 
To grasp earth's higher prizes, or compete 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 37 

With men of keener thought. No sadder sight 

Is seen than feeble minds essaying work 

Beyond their scope. Crude knowledge broadly cast, 

Like rootless sea-weed mixed with frothy scum, 

Floats on the surface of the tide of thought 

And clogs the freighted bark that passage seeks. 

Out of this knowingness grow atheism. 

Office corruptions, speculations rash 

And juggling snares to trap unwary fools ; 

Not so are States made safe." 

"If public ills 
No remedy in education find, 

What then? " the farmer asked. " Is there in law 
Protection adequate ? " 

" Nay, not in law ! 
Though Heaven should send, as claim the Jews, a code 
Of laws direct, what were their worth without 
The men to execute ? Our statute books 
Bristle with dead enactments. Lawmakers 
May legislate till doomsday 'gainst all wrong 
With no effect, because the will to press 
The penalty is wanting." 

" Is there then," 
The farmer asked, " for national disease 
No cure ? " 



38 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

" Our only hope," he answering said, 
" Lies in strong leaders. Few are they who hold 
The reins of power. Our rulers should possess 
Trained intellect, untarnished honor, breadth; — 
Then education proves puissant force 
To lead the multitude. But 'tis not well 
That every scatter-brain should freely prate 
Of themes abstruse which wise men fear to touch 
With hand incautious. Such do seldom vent 
Their own opinions ; they but iterate 
The dogmas of their latest oracle; 
To-morrow comes another prating knave 
Making demands for credence and they turn 
And straight unsay all that they said before; 
Like tinsel weather-vanes to surface spread 
They shift with every idle breath that blows." 

The farmer then, " I marvel much to hear 
From lips of one born on New England soil 
Such scornful words with sentiments effete. 
Thought is alive; we breathe a bracing air; 
Even though crudity may often mar 
The movement, yet 'tis surface froth, — beneath 
The steady current flows. Better by far 
Some skim of rashness than stagnation's hush; 
Better is teeming life than stifling death ; 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Better the shallow, rapid, noisy brook 
With waters eddying round their stony bed 
Than the dank, noisome pool which lurking hides 
In narrow confines and pollution breeds. 
No Old World Aristocracy we want ! — 
Set bounds to knowledge and you bring return 
To feudal night; or else the humbler ranks 
Will burst their hated bonds and anarchy 
Engulf the land in blood." 

" You miss my thought,' 
Argued the lawyer still. " No recreant I 
To faith American; nor would I place 
Bars to the progress of the poor man's son. 
From lowly rank hath many a genius stept 
To high renown. But genius hath no need 
Of rock-hewn steps to scale the precipice; 
The lion shows his lion-nature still 
Though reared among the sheep ; a Franklin needs 
No help from adventitious circumstance. 
Give freest chance to all, say I ! — Then those 
Whom genius prompts will prove that fortune smiles 
On such as have the power to help themselves. 
Events all cluster round the lives of men. 
The hero who by kingly nature holds 
The right divine to rule his fellow-men, 
— A right inherent, not inherited, — 



39 



40 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



One such alone may make or mould a state; 
But baser minds must follow as they're led, 
And it is feeble statesmanship, I ween, 
To put edged tools in every idiot's hand." 

" I like not that," the farmer stoutly said. 

" Men do not make the times, but times make men! 

Louis Magnificent indeed may boast 

* Lo, I am France ! ' — But his successors learn 

At fearful cost that nations are not born 

To aggrandize kings. Out from the people steps 

Our chosen ruler each quadrennial year ; — 

His term expired, the nation's later choice 

Taketh the pledge of office and the first 

Retires a simple citizen once more. 

Movements are more than men! Deathless ideas 

Are the true leaders ! He who in the van 

Waveth the banner, is but ensign still ; 

The leader falls, another takes his place ; 

The gap is closed, the impetuous throng sweeps on. 

Time's mighty epochs with resistless force 

O'erwhelm ambitious hopes and towering forms, 

Bury from sight the loftiest lives and prove 

How insignificant are men compared 

With the vast movements that make History." 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

He paused and silence o'er the circle fell. — 
Musing awhile we sat amid the plash 
Of rippling waters, while the crickets shrilled 
Autumn's first notes, and clamorous katydids 
Answered from pine to pine. Our mingled thoughts 
Compassed events of childhood and the cares 
That older years had brought, or wistful strove 
To penetrate the future's mystery. 

The farmer told of longings to achieve 

A broader life among the ranks of men; 

But filial duty held him bound. Severe 

Had been the struggle this long-cherished hope 

To lay aside, and the laborious life 

Of a New England farm had sorely chafed 

Ambition's restless mood. " And yet," he asked, 

" What is success ? Who knows ? " 

The teacher then, 
" Do you recall, 'mong songs of school, the one 
' Biding at Home ' ? Let's sing it now ! " Then clear 
Her voice rang on the evening air, while we, 
As best our memory served, joined the refrain. 



41 



42 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

THE HEART THAT BIDETH AT HOME 

The wide world open lieth, 

The sea- foam tosseth free, 
The wind blows shrill over forest and hill ' 
And the river is turning the hurrying mill 

As it flows to the surging sea. 

There's a sheltered nook on the hillside 
Where the bluebird doth earliest come 
To build its nest as the cherished guest 
Of him who bideth at home. 

The venturous traveller roveth 

From pole to tropic zone; 
His lands hath he sold that he may behold 
The pageants of princes and treasures untold 

Though naught can he claim as his own ; 

But the gentle heartsease groweth 
Familiar walks beside, 
And contentment shall brim the beaker of him 
Who tranquil at home will bide. 

Ambition's proud allurement 
May tempt the mind to stray, 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Seeking fortune and fame and frivolous aim 
Through intricate pathways of folly and blame 
Till life is frittered away. 

But peace her olive branch bearing 
Shall back to her refuge come, 
Like the storm-tost dove no longer to rove 

From the heart that bideth at home. 

Again the teacher musing spoke : " How fast 
The changes come ! " she said. — " Ten years from now 
These isles, this lovely lake, will be the same. 
Yet we, and all our little worlds be changed," 

' Nay," said the farmer, " Time's assiduous hand 
On nature too will ruthlessly be laid. 
These woods by growth and axe will varied be; 
This rock, whereon we sit, is yearly moved 
By icy pressure up the shore's incline ; 
'Tis said that all those wooded swamps that reach 
To westward, once were lakes by Indians fished ; 
In the brief stretch of years my memory spans 
This lake has altered, wider is the marge. 
Less deep the waters, and the contour changed." 

" How sad to think it 1 " I exclaimed, " I shrink 
From strangeness, and would find some spot unknown 
To Time's remorseless touch." 



43 



44 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

The teacher then, 
" I welcome change ; without its lifting veil, 
There were no room for hope, — the brightest boon 
Bestowed on suffering men. Sorrow no less 
Than joy is transient; yea, and happiness ' 
Bliss fuller seems through contrast with the ill. 
Yet yonder stars have looked with steadfast eyes 
On countless generations; when we tire 
Of earth's unrest, then may we turn our eyes 
To things enduring in the heavens." 

But while 
Forward and back our fitful fancies strayed, 
In silence pondering the former theme 
The student sat, and after pause, to this 
He brought us back. 

[But why should I prolong 
Such busy argument, misusing forms 
Of verse to build its scaffolds? Sure the Muse 
Must frown at such perversion, deeming prose 
The fitter medium for such structural ends. — 
Should I not then forbear this lengthening tale 
Of linked discussion under Poesy's seal? 

But stay ! How often hath the Sister Arts 

— Sculpture and Painting — limned in colors deep 

Or chiselled in fine marble those austere 

Yet human types that marked New England's strength! 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Then should the Poet's art refuse to trace 
The picture of these youthful Puritans 
With earnest^ unpruned seal confronting straight 
The ageless problems of the human soulf] 

Slowly the student spoke : " This rapid age 
No menace for the future holds, I ween ; 
Herein our safety, wisely to prevent 
That weakened spot should cause unequal strain 
To social order. In the nation's life, 
And man's alike, should faculties unfold 
In harmony, none slighted and none forced. 
Neglect the physical, the race declines. 
Disease and death hold carnival. Exalt 
The body more than mind or soul, — ^then men 
Are tyrants, women slaves, the aged die 
Uncared for, might is right, and gross desires 
Bear woful rule. 

"If mental culture fail, 
Must soul and body suffer like decay; 
For hand in hand with ignorance will walk 
Disease and sin. Reason unused becomes 
Extinct, and men to beastly level sink. 
Place intellect too high, and it usurps 
The place of God, while poor humanity 
Goes down to death despairing and alone. 



45 



46 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

" Let morals be neglected, conscience weak, 

Prisons will overflow, bold robbery 

Riot unchecked, and no man's life be safe. 

If conscience be exalted at expense i 

Of mind and body, then its morbid strength 

Breeds superstition, bigotry and hate, 

And death to individual liberty. 

The page of history proves this constant law 

Of symmetry in growth for men and nations, else 

The life is out of poise and ruin threats." 



" Then would you seek," I asked, " to teach 
All wisdom's lore to all ? " 

"Why not?" he said, 
" Learning's resources all are good ; she ne'er 
Is dangerous, except for unknown truth 
Beyond. And e'en though common minds mistake 
Half truths for wisdom, yet the remedy 
Is not to curb, but freely to supply 
The needed culture. Would you shut the plant 
Misshapen in its growth, in cellar dark? 
Nay, rather, wouldst not let the blessed light 
In fullest radiance in? Then will the germ 
Soon put forth buds upon the side that seemed 
But dead before." 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 



47 



" Your words seem fraught with truth/' 
I answered, " but the race and not the man 
The unit is. Society hath needs 
Most varied, and should nourish men and minds 
Of differing mould. Likeness in social life 
Were tedious. One may hold his little whim 
Aloft ; another mind will toward the world 
Turn other face of polyhedral truth; — 
Let but the balance of the whole be kept, 
Then difference will not lessen social strength." 



" Search through the forest depths," he said, " and find 

Two trees in every point alike; not such 

In all that leafy shade ; nay, every leaf 

Bears its specific marks of form and tint, — 

No tedious sameness there! — yet every one 

Is reaching toward the form symmetrical 

For its own kind ordained." 

He paused, — again 
The lawyer took the argument : " I find 
Within your specious reasoning a flaw ; 
The best fruition of a life were not 
Its own perfection, but to leave some boon 
To bless mankind." 



48 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

" The human faculties," 
The student said, " are common heritage ; 
E'en though they dormant lie, yet are their germs 
In every soul existent, and were meant , 

To grow. I take it, he best serves his race 
Whose self the race ideal best displays." 

The lawyer then, " Life is too short, and life's 
Criterions too stringent are for one 
To reach them all. No man hath aptitude 
For many arts, and versatility 
Is a doubtful talent. Many a clever lad, 
Product of modern schools, sets forth in life 
Smacking of much, in nothing versed ; and soon 
Vagrant in work becomes. Jack at all trades 
But master hand at none. Yet lowly powers, 
Concentrate, marvels oft achieve ; and when 
A mind of giant stature single aim 
Pursues, a genius rises on the world." 

" Genius, forsooth ! " the student cried. " Methinks 

That were a euphemism for nerve disease, 

A growth abnormal of one faculty 

With dwarf age of the rest ; as though a man 

Should be all hand or nose. Engrossment brings 

Insanity. — 'Tis facile power to change 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Relations, giveth health. A genius seems 
A monster — not a giant — who demands 
Selfish exemption from all social laws." 



Then I, impetuous, " Genius worth the name 
Is truest saneness, oft by grovelling minds 
Misunderstood. The world can well afford 
To shelter natures sensitive, and bear 
With mood eccentric, which alone perhaps 
Makes genius possible." 

Hot the reply, 
" Save me from men who pose as finer clay 
Than common sons of earth ! " 

Impatiently 
The lawyer protest gave : " These sentiments 
Are out of date. The highest genius known 
Is talent for untiring work." 

But I, 
" 'Tis only those of genius destitute. 
Would so define! A world-wide difference lies 
'Twixt facile talent drawing waters out 
From public wells, and that creative force 
Which giveth rise to fountains fresh, itself 
Fed by supernal springs." 



49 



50 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Swift the reply, 
" Whether 'twixt genius and high talent lies 
Difference in kind or only in degree, 
I argue not. But this alone I say : 
That steadfast purpose wed to mind robust, 
If it be not genius, yet is close allied. 
And beareth royal offspring. Noblest gifts 
If scattered come to naught; what imbecile 
Would bid a Raphael learn all handicrafts ? 
And even if mighty isolated souls 
May compass many fields, yet common minds 
Must seek a focus, if they would achieve. 
The man of one idea will make that felt; 
There never yet was born a glorious truth 
Till men were found to live and die therefor ; 
— Such are the men who organize reforms." 

" The passion for reform," the student cried, 

" Hath crazed the world ! This is the age of cranks ; 

Of men who say, * Whatever is, is wrong." 

The greatest social nuisance is the man 

Of narrow range and strong convictions." 

Quick 
Came the retort, " Perhaps your taste prefers 
The mind so broadened that convictions all 
Have fled — a frigid sea of ice. — For such 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 5 1 

Words are too feeble to express my scorn ! 
Earth's vital forces lie in men's beliefs ; 
For earnestness there is no substitute." 

Answered the student, " You'll agree at least 
That good doth seldomer result than harm 
From zeal o'ertopping judgment." 

" Nay," he said, 
" Mistaken zeal her own mistakes corrects ; 
But judgment balanced in too even poise, 
'Twixt all opposing claims will halting stand 
Till opportunity hath passed it by." 

The student then, " The virtue that hath cost 

Most blood and heart-break, and hath slowest growth, 

Is tolerance, twin of blessed charity. 

The bigot knows no justice; — 'tis the power 

To justly weigh opposing views alone 

That fits for fellowship." 

With gentle words 
The teacher spoke : " Earth's shining records bear 
A noble roll of martyrs, devotees. 
Simple enthusiasts, oft fanatics called 
By selfish men with complex motives moved; 
For busy cynic doubt will folly find 
In loftiest heroism. Yet was the world 



52 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Of these unworthy ; naught of pain they recked, 
Nor counted dear their lives, as rich in faith 
They wrought their missions. Grandest figures these 
That lighten History's page ! " ^ 

" Perhaps," he said, 
" Distinction lies 'twixt men of one idea. 
And those of single aim. The man who sees 
But isolated truth, however pure 
His purpose, lacketh wisdom in affairs. 
And must by ill-timed zeal antagonize 
The men of differing judgment. Seen afar 
He seems majestic, as a shadow cast 
In long perspective takes colossal shape ; 
But those who stood the nearest to the souls 
Called heroes, witness of collisions rude 
And wordy warfare waged by stubborn wills." 

Then I, " The mind in even balance poised 

Hath light, not fire, and can not warm men's hearts; 

Unerring judgment ne'er can make amends 

For ardor's loss; our faulty natures hold 

Most dear, the soul sometimes by passion fired." 

Answered the student, " Yea, the common mind 
Is more impressed by lightning than by rays 
Of the all powerful, steadfast-shining sun. 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Is the sun cold because of dazzling light? 
The ample courtly nature, held in rein, 
Is oft misjudged by scorners who discern 
Greatness but in one magnitude enlarged; 
So the cathedral grand, by perfect form 
Deceiveth unto smallness till it find 
Comparison with lesser structures near. 
Proportion giveth worthiest power. All truth 
Is linked with all, and naught is truly known 
If viewed apart from its relations wide." 

Quickly the lawyer, " Vaporing words are these ! 

The world is full of men of boasted breadth 

Who prate in generalities, and deem 

Details and special aims for grovellers fit. 

Far nobler he, who with untiring zeal, 

Searches the smallest corner of the field 

Of thought ; — the truth for which he pays his life 

Be it the structure of the insect's eye, 

Or rudimentary spore of tiniest plant. 

Hath genuine worth. The world can spare the man 

Who to self-culture bows as idol god. 

From each it wants his best; restriction brings 

Achievement ; and large recompense it bears 

When aims distracting to a noble end 

Are gladly sacrificed. The narrow stream 



53 



54 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Cutteth its channel deep; the pointed shaft 

Sinks farthest in the earth. From boundless wastes 

Of ocean, cloudless vapors daily rise 

Unseen, unfelt, through realms of atmosphere* 

But let the force that parts their molecules 

Be pent in narrow limits and it makes 

The power which drives our engines, carries trade 

And is the strongest servant of the world." 

So, through that summer evening on the rocks 
We lingering sat, while westering stars rolled by, 
And loth to break our little circle, held 
Rambling, yet sequent, idly-earnest talk. 

But Lela had not spoken; she had sat 
As one in revery lost. I see her still, — 
Her figure darkly outlined on the sky. 
Her face upturned to meet the watching stars ; 
— ^A girlish form, a woman's thoughtful face, 
A head of queenly mould, with tresses fair 
That shone in sunlight, and escaped their coils 
At invitation of each wandering breeze; 
— A simple nature, truthful, loving, shy. 
But bold in utterance when conviction pressed ; 
— A quick, retentive memory, and the will 
To feed her love for study and to find 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 55 

The beautiful 'mid hostile household cares, — 
Such was our Lela on that summer night. 
Since then the beauty which she always loved 
Round her in larger measure hath been poured, 
And in her ripened womanhood she sheds 
In man}^ a stricken heart and straitened home 
The radiance of her lavish gifts and smiles. 

Motionless sat she, till her brother spoke: 
" And have you, Lela, not a single word 
Of contribution to our evening's talk?" 

With hesitating lips she made reply, 
" Your words before me vividly have brought 
Grandfather's last Thanksgiving Day on earth. 
You all remember him ? " 

Indeed we did ; 
— For many years the preacher in yon church. 
Who, forced by failing energies to yield 
His parish cares to hands of younger strength, 
Had spent his evening days in Lela's home. 
His snowy beard and long, white curling locks 
Gave him the aspect of some prophet bard, 
Or to the lively fancy might suggest 
White Winter's self in hoary tableau set. 
All children loved his genial face to greet. 



56 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

And oft he'd gather them about his knee 

To tell them stories of the olden time. 

Qear to the last his mental powers had shone, 

And made his conversation the delight 

Of all the dwellers in that countryside. 

On that Thanksgiving Day he preached again 

To his old people — afterwards at home 

With sons and daughters and their children kept 

For the last time New England's festival ; 

Seeming in wonted health he sought his couch, 

But in the night the spirit freed itself 

Leaving a smile upon the old man's face. 

Lela resumed, " 'Tis nearly two years now ; 
Stronger than usual that day he seemed ; 
But as he started for the church he said, 
' My time is short ; I pray that I may speak 
Some lasting words of counsel and of cheer.' 

" Well I remember how my soul was thrilled 
The while he told us how Jehovah led 
His ancient people through the desert waste. 
And that the earth is still his sovereign care; 
And how by ways mysterious, still He brings 
Order and peace from Earth's confusions dire. 
Briefly he traced the years himself had known 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 57 

E'en from the century's birth — events profound 

By a single lifetime spanned — great wrongs made right, 

Dangers averted, knotty questions solved, 

And gracious gifts to men and nations given. 

With earnest, strenuous words he pointed out 

Pitfalls that wait a hurrying age, the need 

For faith and action with a firm resolve 

To make God's will the only aim and law. 

" And then with trembling yet triumphant voice 
And far-off look like raptured saint, he said, 
' Life's work for me is done ; my journey ends ; 
Before my feet Death's Jordan rolls its wave ; 
Yet for a moment to my sight God shows 
The promised glory that awaits the world. 
All kingdoms of the earth shall one day be 
Kingdoms of righteousness and of our Lord; 
— All kingdoms — all — the nations not alone. 
But realms of art and science, wealth and power 
Shall yield their trophies at His blessed feet; 
— Such vision my dim eyes perceive from afar ; 
And now, O Lord, my soul shall go in peace. 
Knowing that in the fullness of the times 
Out of the storm-tost elements shall rise 
Infinite unity toward which all truth 
Forever tends, the kingdom of our God.' 



58 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

" The service done, at home he quiet sat 
A little while apart with wearied look, 
But soon with freshened vigor freely shared 
The day's festivity. The friends were gone, 
The little ones in bed, yet lingered he 
Later than was his wont, with me beside, 
My cheek against his knee ; — deep in my heart 
Lieth the impress of the talk we held 
That last dear evening ere he went away. 
After his voice was stilled, with memory fresh 
I wrote his words — sacred mementoes they. 
The flickering firelight o'er his silvered brow 
An aureole shone ; his hand caressing laid 
Upon my hair, the benediction seemed 
Of sainted seer. 

'' 'The world recedes,' he said, 
* The gate of heaven opens ; soon my feet 
Shall tread celestial streets. Life's pilgrimage 
Lies dim behind me, short and mercy-crowned; 
For all the way He led me, for Hfe's joys 
And griefs and cares, for doubts that brightened faith, 
For tears that watered love and frustrate plans 
That led me to His service God be praised.' 

" 'To me the way looks long,' I said, ' my life 
Lies dark before me ; whither shall it lead ? ' 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 59 

" 'Thy Father knoweth ; He will make it plain. 
And yet, dear child, with life's mistakes unmade, 
How gladly would I save thy tender feet 
From thorns of pain and sin ! But tenderer love 
Than mine doth compass all thy ways ; whene'er 
Thou needest light, the light shall surely dawn, 
And every path is good which leads us home.' 

" 'He leadeth those who follow,' slow I said, 
' But I mid care's confusions scarcely know 
Whether His voice or mine own wayward will 
Direct my steps.' 

" 'Lela,' he gently said, 
' I sealed thy name in baptism, and for thee 
Through all thy life I've prayed. To God's good care 
I'll trust thy ways. Yet look thou well, my child. 
To know what impulse rules thy life. The world 
Hath much to wean from Heaven ; wealth, pleasure, fame, 
Reach glittering prizes for their votaries' grasp ; 
— What are they worth if we God's favor lose? 
Who chooseth lowest good must highest miss ; 
But he who highest seeks with single eye. 
Is satisfied, nor sighs for lower joys. 
None can two masters serve ; who findeth God 
Droppeth all hindering load; e'en lawful things 
May inexpedient prove; unmeasured gain 
Doth such denial give.' 



6o WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

" 'Grandpa/ I asked, 

* Which aim is worthier, mine own life to mould 
To true proportion, or to bless the world 

By noble deed ? ' 

'' 'Think well, my child,' he said, 

* Doth not the selfish end itself defeat ? 
For others' weal let self ennobled be. 
Yet is not higher motive e'en than this. 

To man vouchsafed? Hast read the legend old 
How Offero the Giant sought for years 
The strongest for his Master, till at length 
By service of Earth's weak ones, in his arms 
He bore the Christ-Child and in Him discerned 
Lord over Earth and Heaven, the Mightiest One ; 
Then strength and life forever consecrate 
To Him he long had sought, his name was called 
Khristophorous — the bearer of the Christ.' 

*' Then I, ' He sought for years before he found 
The Master. Earth's distractions often seem 
A darkened maze, in which 'tis hard to find 
The heavenly way.' 

" 'Yes, child,' he answering said, 

* Tired feet may stumble groping in the night, 
And careful hearts are troubled while they fail 
Of that good part which none can take away; 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 6l 

And earnest souls grapple with questions hard ; 

Eager they strive, then disappointed cry 

" Knowledge increaseth sorrow ; weariness 

Of flesh from study comes." The Master saith, 

" Learn ye of me. Earth's learning only gives 

Earth's restlessness, but mine shall give you rest." ' 

" 'Grandpa/ I faltered, * Earth lies close around, 
And Heaven seems far away. God placed us here ; 
At His decree life's questions we must solve ; 
To traverse well the earthly path methinks 
Needeth far more than just the heavenly choice.' 

" * My child, mistake me not ! The single eye 
No requisition makes for narrow thought; 
The cumulative purpose rightly claims 
Multiform means and methods as her own; 
In comprehension dwells simplicity, 
No less than in restriction ; self-denial 
Serves not as end, but means of nobler good. 
Heaven's kingdom first be sought, and let the rest 
Take lower place; our heavenly Father knows 
Our need of these. So like a river strong 
Which ever gather eth volume, shall thy life 
Flow to the Ocean of Eternity.' 



62 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

" 'Grandpa/ I said, ' small duties hedge me in ; 
If I were free some noble work to choose 
My life might seem of moment ; here I chafe.' 

" ' Tis God allots/ he said. ' If special work ' 
Be thine, thou'lt hear His call. — Then answer thou! 
But look thou well discern betwixt God's voice 
And Eli's; nor forestall His time. 

" 'Yet few 
Are signalled to such service; unto most 
Are varied talents given, and none was meant 
To be in a napkin hid, but every one 
With usury rendered.' 

" Still I faltering urged, 
' Have not reforms in every age been wrought 
By men who bore persistent aim to push 
A single truth to its extremity ? ' 

" 'My child,' he said, ' the world sometimes forgets 

Or for awhile rejects some vital truth. 

And then God often sends a living voice 

To force this truth upon the world's deaf ears ; 

Such men prepare the way for great reforms. 

But after these must come the broader man 

To fit the new idea to its place. 

Once in Judea's deserts rose a voice 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 63 

Crying " Repent, and make His pathway straight " ; 
Great was the man, and great shall be his praise ! 
Yet said the Master, " Greater even than he 
Shall be the least within Heaven's kingdom found." 

" *In Him that followed were the treasures hid 
Of wisdom; lavishly He emptied forth 
Things new and old from His exhaustless store; 
Unto the simple, simple words He spake, 
And led them to the truth through parables ; 
Answered the Wise with learned argument. 
Preached before doctors of the law, rebuked 
The arrogance of Scribe and Pharisee; 
He healed the sick in body and in soul, 
And none of all those waiting crowds e'er came 
With asking heart and empty turned away ; 
By multitudinous means He finished thus 
The work His Father gave Him, the one work 
Which all work comprehends — for sake of which 
He lived and died — to witness bear to Truth 
And make men one with Him who is the Truth. 

" 'And as the Father sent Him, even so 
He sends His followers now ; most fit are they 
To do this work, who ever seek to reach 
The measure of the stature of the One 
In whom all fullness dwelt. 



64 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

" 'When God would send 
The gospel to the nations, chose He Paul, 

— A very Jew, instructed in the law, 

A citizen of Rome and schooled in Greek — 
All things to all, that he might all men gain ; ' 

— Yet of his work reporting, " This one thing 
Alone I do ! " May God's dear mercy haste 
The blessed time when all Earth's corners dark, 
The homes of sin and wretchedness and death, 
And marts of trade, and politics and creeds 
And halls of learning and the church of God, 
Shall feel the potent personal influence 

Of the comprehensive, consecrated man ! ' 

" 'Grandpa,' I said, ' your words are always wise ; 
And yet forgive me, for it seemeth oft. 
That common souls should shun the broadened aim; 
That reaching far and grasping widely some 
Would fail of all, because too large the prize.' 

" 'My child,' he said, ' a truth is in your words ; 

Too large indeed may man's ambition make 

His earthly aims ; not always were it wise 

For earth-bound wings to essay the realms of air; 

Meagre endowment, or a life cut off 

From life's full limit, must frustration bring 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

To earthly aspiration; finite souls 

True dignity in limitation find. 

But be our aim the doing of God's will, 

No failure threatens ; He will us prepare 

For that which for us He prepares. — Be sure 

The work that needs us will us find at last. 

" 'What matter which our work so God's be done ? 

Not monuments reared for the builder's fame 

Our deeds, but humble elements conjoined 

To form the All-embracing edifice 

Designed by the Almighty Architect. 

Whether 'tis ours to plan proportions large 

Or perfect needful work of low details, 

Or if He bid us glorious statues carve 

For noble niches, we are workers all 

With Him in whom the building fitly framed 

An holy temple groweth. — Not to us 

The praise, but to His name for evermore ! ' " 

Long had we lingered till the aspiring sun 
Had traversed more than half his lower arc; 
A moment hushed we sat while solemn thought 
And lofty purposes within us stirred; — 
Yet ah, how much our hearts undisciplined 
Missed of the wisdom stored in Wisdom's words! 



6s 



66 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Silent and thoughtful, with reluctant step, 
And arms entwined, we sought our tent. — At dawn 
We broke our camp, and steadfast turned to meet 
The burdens of another year of work. 



A CAESURA 

As one who in the storm's calm center stands, 
Knowing that all around fierce winds are driving. 
Yet, feeling not their conflict, folds his hands 
Heedless alike of past and future striving; 
Thus I, of late so driven and hard beset 
And sure of untried dangers yet before me, 
For a brief while these turmoils all forget, 
And feel a holy stillness brooding o'er me; 
Passion no longer in my heart is raging. 
Conscience with will no more stern warfare waging, 
Distressing doubt hath granted sweet release; 
Life for awhile with lessened pressure holds me. 
Gracious content in calm embrace enfolds me. 
And on my quiet soul is graven " Peace." 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 67 



PART II 

From weary wanderings in the fruitless quest 

For satisfying aim — a harried staretch 

Of restless passionate years — I turned last week 

To scenes my childhood knew. Beside the lake 

I gazing stood; I marked the wood, the waves, 

The isles, the houses — little changed except 

For added paint or want of it — a tree 

Here and there missing, many another grown 

To larger shadow — yet the selfsame spot 

Where once I played. I sat upon the rock 

Where tasks of school I used to con, and gave 

To memory rushing thoughts. The flowers bloomed fair, 

The waters dimpled as of old. Yet still 

" Are they the same ? " I whispered o'er and o'er ; 

" Are they the same, and is it / have changed ? " 

Our childhood's world grows dwarf to eyes mature; 
The sky dome once so comprehensive lies 
Contracted, when our curious eyes have scanned 
Stretching horizons of the wider world; 
The boats — how tiny now they looked — still skimmed 
The surface, but by stranger youth propelled. 
Along the beach the farmer's children now 



68 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Played with the sand and pebbles. — Ah! 'tis these, 
The children of the generation then unborn, 
That most remind us how the years have sped. 

Through all the well-remembered paths once more 

I with the farmer walked; surveyed his farm, 

His browsing herds, and fields of waving grain; 

Here were improvements, garden-walks new-laid, 

A vine-clad arbor, costlier implements. 

Mute signs of thrift and taste. — " New England farms 

Have compensations still," he said. " This life 

Was not of my free choosing, yet to-day 

Thankful am I that I escaped the rush 

Of feverous speculation which perchance 

Had proved my ruin. Independence here 

Is mine; more safe than city street this farm 

For children's playground; — ^yea, and for myself 

Life's avenues are broader than I deemed." 

I felt his stalwart manhood ; heard his name 

With honor spoken; saw the generous works 

Of local patriotism his hand had wrought, 

And prompt my heart responded, " It is true ! 

No stinted life is this to spurn with scorn." 

Then to the farm of all Earth's spots best known. 
By strangers habited, with mingled thoughts 
Of joy and homesickness, my steps I turned; 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 69 

Noted each change: — ^that maple-tree I knew 
As sapHng ; yonder elm had lost a branch 
In Autumn's gale; an ancient granary 
Had been removed, an orchard newly set; 
This was the old spice-apple-tree, and those 
The cherished " winged-sweetings," — ^bore they yet ? 
And here, oh, joy! — the gnarled, crooked trunk 
Low-branching, where the tiniest, wariest feet 
Could safely climb ; and this the very bough 
Where once we found the nest of a humming-bird. 
Fashioned of mullein-down by moss o'er-laid, 
With eggs as big as peas. Beside the lane 
The scattering clump of tansy scatters still 
Old-fashioned perfume; here we used to pick 
Handfuls of pungent peppermint, — ah, there ! — 
I've found a sprig! 

I trod the woodland path 
That led through tract of marsh o'ercrossed by road 
Of corduroy, our favorite way to school; 
Those lofty pines could tell a marvelous tale 
Of children's frolic when from school let loose 
We scampered 'neath their arches, — hurrying thoughts 
With smiles and tears beset, a motley crowd, 
O'erwhelm the heart revisiting such scenes. 



yo WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

I sat beside the farmer's board, and when 

His sweet-voiced wife had led the Httle ones 

Sleepy to bed, we drew our chairs beside 

The wide-mouthed fire-place where his grandsire sat 

With Lela's sunny hair against his knee. 

I asked for Lela, — how her life had fared, 

And did she often turn from larger lines 

To the home of childhood? 

Then the brother told 
Of changes swift that swept their roof-tree bare; 
Of marriage, — death, — of younger ones gone forth 
To fight life's battles, till the home-nest seemed 
How empty ! — Then as Lela's duties dropped 
One after one, she thought she heard the call 
To far-off service 'mong Earth's slighted ones; 
But God had other plans for Lela; — first. 
Long illness closing fast the paths she sought; 
And then the gates swung wide to fairer ways ; 
Now in refinement's home, loving, beloved, 
With wealth and loveliness around her poured, 
To works of love her life is dedicate; 
Patron of art, a friend of struggling souls. 
And liberal helper of all liberal aims. 
Her gracious heart dispenses with free hand 
Heaven's generous gifts. And hers this crowning grace 
With every lot true sisterhood to feel ; 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 71 

Welcome alike in palace and in cot, 
Her sweet appreciation freely sought 
By rich and poor, by simple and profound; 
Nay, even the outcast ones no trace may find 
Of condescension in her saving aid. 
This is the bond that in the Golden Age 
Shall social breaches heal, when shall be felt 
By gentle and by common, high and low, 
The truth that love fraternal binding all 
Mankind inheres in that paternal love 
Wherein our hearts take refuge every time 
We say " Our Father." 

But whene'er the press 
Of Lela's duties manifold permits 
Her longing heart the loved home-nest to seek, 
'Tis gala-day for all ; — the children think 
No face so fair, no voice so sweet, no wit 
So merry as Aunt Lela's. 

Next I asked 
News of the cousin. — Scholarship and fame, 
A student's quiet mind averse to mix 
In strife of questions practical, had marked 
His chosen course. Events scarce seemed to touch 
The even life-flow ; — genial, tolerant, wise, — 
His writings aye had borne the stamp of truth 
And noble sentiment. But suddenly 



72 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Had come a change ; and he whose taste refined 
Had shunned admixture uncongenial, now 
Stern duty's call had heard that bade to raise 
His voice in conflict with a cursed wrong; 
So had he reached a manhood more robust, ' 
Won through conviction that a purpose high 
Should take command of learning's regiments, 
That fairest culture as an end pursued 
Is selfishness, that art and knowledge both 
Must bow to human weal. 

Then turned my thoughts 
Toward other two that shared our gayety 
In that brief week. — Knew he of these ? For I 
In foreign wanderings had too seldom heard 
From childhood's friends. 

Prolonged the tale he told, — 
Three little lives in swift succession struck 
By scourge of fatal illness — only one 
Left for their solace — loss of wealth through false 
And trusted friend ; — then, bitterest draught of all, 
Revengeful of the lawyer's zeal for right 
Came treacherous enmity's accusing threat 
With stain of his good name; — till staggered, stunned 
And ill, both life and reason long had hung 
In poise. Yet God was merciful ; no blot 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

Stained his true heart, and now at last men saw 
The honest and unselfish thought so long 
Misunderstood. Out of these throes was born 
Within his soul a gentler charity 
For differing judgments. Calmed by time, his mind 
A milder temper now displays. — Yea, more, — 
E'en in the wofulest strait was greatest boon 
Vouchsafed, to be upheld and cheered by one 
Most royal woman's soul that never felt 
One doubt, nor wavered in her steadfast love. 
— Happy is she who by such soaring faith 
Is the salvation of a breaking heart ! 

Then of my own vexed, wandering life I spoke, 
But briefly as one may. — How can we ope 
To friendliest eyes the fiery furnace doors 
Where is begot the force that moves the wheels 
Of life most intricate! 'Twere foolish then 
To deem that of those other lives we two 
Discerned the truth. Their lives indeed ! Of these 
We knew as much as of electric power 
Knoweth the babe who stares at lightning's flash. 
Or as the savage watching on the shore 
The tidewave ebb and flow, knoweth the force 
That sways the spheres — so lone we live our lives ! 



73 



74 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

With teaching worn, desiring change, had I 

Other vocation taken; to this end 

In study first at home, and then for years 

On foreign soil, with slender means had striven; 

Some measure of success had gained, could no^ 

In moderate comfort live, my work at last 

Finding fair sale ; and drawn by memory's cord 

Had come for one more glimpse of girlhood's home, 

No longer home to me or mine. — I now 

Was left alone; some of my friends were dead, 

The others widely scattered, and with homes 

And interests distinct from mine; and I 

After brief holiday would set my thought 

Again to chosen tasks. 

Much had I seen 
Of curious custom in my changeful life: 
I spoke of palaces and pageants gay, 
Of Nature's prodigies, of ruins old. 
Of perilous adventure, and of scenes 
Laughter-impelling met in foreign streets. 
I told of squalid poverty and strife 
Of social classes nursing in the oppressed 
A brood of vengeful thoughts that make grim threat 
To social bulwarks. Also told I how 
The stars and stripes, sounds of my native tongue 
Or trifling sign suggesting home, well nigh 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 75 

Would move my eyes to tears ; for patriotism 
Strengthens in exile; he knows best how dear 
His native land, who views it from afar, — 
These things I told. 

But could I also speak 
Of frustrate plans, of deviant darkling ways 
That faced me with a wall of rock; of doubts 
Of duty's leading, dim perplexities 
'Mong treacherous pitfalls ; of a passionate pain 
In which all love, e'en God's, illusory seemed ; 
Of thirst for fame, of failure's bitter draughts. 
Followed by tasted joys that in my mouth 
To ashes turned ; of searching after truth 
That baffled ever by chameleon hues ; 
And last of all, the drowning grasp for faith 
Whose saving cord so near me swung, yet e'er 
Escaped my clutching hand ; — till, starving strength 
All spent, before my straining eyes there rose 
One trembling hope, — to see my childhood's home, 
Regain my childhood's mind, and start anew 
With faith and purpose like a little child? 
— Of this and more than this I held my peace. 

Full late we talked, in common social parle, 
Of passing news, of politics and books; 
While the familiar quiet by degrees 
Softened the discord in my vehement soul. 



76 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

At length the embers on the brick-tiled hearth 
Burned low, and in their flickering flame appeared 
Shapes of the past. With voice and heart subdued 
We spoke of vanished faces ; of sealed lips 
That kissed our own ; of moments sacred held ' 
From thoughtless reference; of that summer eve 
When Lela's words a message seemed to bring 
Thrilling our careless hearts, from saint in Heaven; 
Of that Thanksgiving night that heard his last 
Wise, gracious words, before he " fell on sleep " ; 
And like a Mother's voice to infant strayed, 
I heard again the invitation, " Come, 
Learn ye of me. Earth's learning only gives 
Earth's restlessness, but mine shall give you rest." 
My heart made answer, " Even so, I come." 

At morn I bade good-bye, and turned once more 
To the city's tumult. But how great the change 
Two days had wrought ! — Is mine indeed the soul 
So fever-famished, spent with vigils lone 
Wasting its feeble force 'gainst prisoning bars? 
O mystery of grace ! How calm my pulse ! 
How hushed my heart! How mercy-crowned my life 
Lies futureward! 

Perhaps no more my eyes 
Shall gaze on childhood's home — no other home 
Can e'er claim love so intimate. — But o'er 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 77 

My heart its benediction lies, as now, 
Like laborer worn refreshed by nooning rest, 
I turn to meet life's afternoon of work. 
Scattered are friends of youth, and ne'er again 
May that gay circle here unbroken meet; 
Unlike our lives, and life's experience 
Hath divers lessons taught us — unto each 
What most he needed. Would we dare to change 
The courses where All-knowing Love hath led 
Our ignorant feet? Clearly at last I see 
My life is mine, and so for me 'tis best. 

But memory's silken ties shall still unite 

Our sundered spirits in the happy past. 

This joy is safe ; so may we ever hold 

Our friends in presence. — Yea, and though our ways 

Have wide diverged, do not their curving lines 

Meridian-like bend toward another pole? 

Nay, rather, while we follow deviant rays 

Of luminous truth, scattered and zigzagged oft 

By earth's prismatic lenses — as to each 

The light is shown — whether the burning red, 

Or quiet blue, or shaded violet. 

Or glowing yellow, — may they bye and bye 

Gather us all where undivided truth 

In whitest radiance streams from off the throne! 



78 WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

POSTLUDE 

Spirit of ceaseless Change, so mighty, stern and grasping, 
With thee at strife we pass our life, yet thy behest 
fulfill. 

Thou seizest every treasure that our hearts are clasping 
And workest thy grim will. 

Thou takest to thyself our early joys and graces, 

Thou hedgest in the fields wherein our youthful feet 
have ranged. 

Thou printest deep thy seal upon our forms and faces, 
And life for us is changed. 

Each hill and lake and stream of old association 

Thy presence feels and o'er it steals an unfamiliar 
guise; 
And we ourselves most changed through fortune's aber- 
rations 
Look on with altered eyes. 

We cry, " May we naught save from thy rapacious 
fingers ? 
Thou claim'st too much." With eager clutch we hold 
our treasures fast. 
While we resist, 'tis done; thy purpose never lingers, 
And what thou wilt, thou hast. 



WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 79 

Yet is thy rule so harsh? Is there no mercy lying 

Hid from our eyes in dim disguise within thy dread 
decrees ? 

Hark ! Borne upon the wind among the treetops sighing, 
Come to us words like these: 

" Children of Earth, consider ! The wind his circuit 
maketh ; 
The supple tree that yields shall be the stronger for the 
blast ; 
The trunk that will not bend its uplift head it breaketh. 
And sternly hurrieth past. 

" It stirreth waves and currents in the throbbing ocean, 
And to its destined haven's rest it beareth safe along 

The stable self -poised ship across the wild commotion 
With movement swift and strong." 

Spirit of Change, resisting thy dread control no longer, 
Thy coming sure we calm endure and bend beneath 
thy sway. 

So find we that thy touch hath left us larger, stronger, 
Nobler from day to day. 

Bracing each trembling nerve and all our powers con- 
trolling. 
With faltering will and courage still sustained by faith 
sublime, 



8o WHEN YOUTH MET LIFE 

We yield us to the current adown the world that's rolling, 
The changeful stream of Time. 

Yet Spirit Great, thy scepter is sign of limitation; 

The finite own and they alone, thine undisputed sway ; 
Through time's terrestrial course with every tribe and 
nation 

Thou hast thy will and way. 

Even boundless Truth discerned by finite comprehension 
Seemeth to change its form and range as but in part 
'tis seen; 

It only can be known in full and true extension 
In Heaven's clear light serene. 

But when, O Earthly Change, thine empery's subjection 
For aye shall cease in Heavenly peace, the truth shall 
then be viewed 

In the unchangeable and measureless perfection 
Of Grod's infinitude. 



OCT 26 ssn 



One copy del. to Cat. Div. 



OCT 27 '9M 



